Polisario at UN : Moroccan occupation Must Stop Plundering Sahrawi People’s Wealth

NEW YORK — The Polisario Front’s representative at the United Nations and coordinator with MINURSO, Sidi Mohamed Omar, welcomed the latest decision by the UN Special Committee on Decolonization (Committee of 24), which reaffirms the Sahrawi people’s inalienable right to self-determination, freedom, independence, and sovereignty over their natural resources.

In a statement to the Algerian Press Agency (APS) on Monday, Omar described the decision as “extremely significant” both politically and economically. Politically, he said, it falls squarely within the committee’s mandate, grounded in UN General Assembly Resolution 1514 (XV), which outlines the global framework for the decolonization of territories. Economically, it reasserts the legitimate sovereignty of colonized peoples over their natural resources.

He emphasized that the decision sends a “strong message” to the Moroccan occupying state, calling on it to cease its continued exploitation of Sahrawi wealth. Omar recalled that both the European Court of Justice and the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights have issued rulings confirming that the Sahrawi people are the rightful owners of their resources and that Morocco’s actions in the occupied Western Sahara are illegal under international law.

The Sahrawi diplomat concluded by asserting that the committee’s reaffirmation of these principles not only upholds the UN’s decolonization agenda but also underscores the international community’s growing recognition of the Sahrawi cause and the urgency of ending Morocco’s occupation